ER Receives Critical Information Via iPads
By Katie Wike, contributing writer
Firefighters in California are using iPads to send patient information directly to hospitals before they even arrive at the ER
The Laguna Beach Fire Department is giving hospitals a head start on preparing for incoming patients by transmitting their vital signs and other information from the scene via iPads. According to the Daily Pilot, “The LBFD owns nine iPads, which all firefighters use on a rotating basis. Users can type in a patient's name, age, and nature of the injury and, with a tap, transmit data to doctors, often before the person arrives at the hospital.
“Firefighters can also take pictures of the scene, which Api Weinert, the department's emergency medical services trainer and division chief, said helps doctors even more because they can see, for example, whether a patient fell 10 feet or 50 feet. ‘Medical emergencies are extremely time-sensitive,’ said Weinert. ‘The doctor might have to get the MRI machine up and running. Minutes and seconds make a difference.’”
Hospital personnel can have all relevant patient data in less than five minutes, “less than half the time" it took using paper. Users must enter a password and the iPad is programmed to hold five patient records at a time in order to prevent security breaches.
Tammy Valencia, base hospital coordinator at Hoag Hospital - one of the facilities that treat patients served by the LBFD - trains nurses and paramedics on emergency response protocol. "Emergency departments are so impacted, [this technology] allows us to gauge if we need to make a bed ready right away," Valencia said. "It's been amazing. [Paramedics] can post information ... which can tell us the type of patient and how long until they arrive."
The Orange County Register reports the LBFD isn’t alone in replacing paper trails with iPads, writing, “Fire departments and private ambulance companies serving Orange County have been working since 2006 to figure out how to electronically record patient information in a singular system that meets national and state standards.”
It further reports the Orange County Emergency Medical Services, the local certifying office for paramedics, expects the use of iPads “to help first responders detect migrant illnesses, a spate of food poisoning or flu outbreaks in real-time by spotting trends.”
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